


Pergo Pugnare: The Magical Girl Wars

by cae_fanfic



Category: Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magika | Puella Magi Madoka Magica
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-03
Updated: 2017-09-06
Packaged: 2018-10-14 11:38:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 8,226
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10535694
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cae_fanfic/pseuds/cae_fanfic
Summary: 1064 years have passed since the Great Wish that restructured the cosmos. Hanako, a heretic-hunter within the Church of Madoka, finds her world turned upside down when a freak accident brings the past into the present.This is a chain fanfic written by the members of Cal Animage Epsilon, UCI's anime club. Tags may change as the work progresses.





	1. I Think I'm Lost

**Chapter 1 author: sumbebêkos  
**

 

> You don’t have to hate anyone anymore. You don’t have to curse anyone anymore. I’ve come to take that burden away.  
> — _The Testament of Madoka According to Homura_ , chapter 12 

 

I stepped up to the security guard, halting under a lamp that hung from the cave’s ceiling. I hoped the sweat drenching my forehead wasn’t too visible.

The guard held up her ID scanner. “Chip?”

I extended my hand, telling myself there was nothing to worry about. They’d assured me that the chip would fool any scanner.

A small light changed from red to green as the scanner beeped. The guard gestured for the next girl to step up. Stifling a relieved sigh, I hurried through the stone-cut doorway up ahead.

I couldn’t help but look around as I entered the shrine. Sanctum Decreti was the oldest shrine controlled by the heretics who called themselves the Partisans of the Greater Vehicle. Legend said that it was located directly under the spot where Companion Sayaka had stood while making her contract.

It didn’t look much different from an Ancient Way shrine: long and narrow, with an altar at the far end. The wall behind the altar was painted with images of the Holy Quintet. Mami the Just gazed down at the congregation, her angelic smile framed by golden curls. Homura the Witness stood beside her, holding _The Book of the Law of Cycles_  in one hand and  _The Testament of Madoka_ in the other. Kyoko the Confessor knelt below them, head bowed meekly and hands pressed together in prayer. At the center, Companion Sayaka looked down sternly, a sword of judgment in her hand. Above the Four Companions towered an image of the Eternal Madoka. Her long hair streamed behind her as she struck down Wraiths left and right.

At least it _looked_ like Madoka.

During my training, my mentor had told me all about the Partisans and the false Madoka they worshiped. The Partisans claimed that the Law of Cycles had always existed in all timelines, even before the Great Wish, and that the Eternal Madoka was an emanation from it. Madoka Kaname, they said, was just one in a long line of incarnations of the Eternal Madoka.

Of course, that nonsense was nowhere to be found in _The Book of the Law of Cycles_ , _The Testament of Madoka_ , or the Traditions of the Four Companions, so the Partisans had made their own book, _The Teachings of the Eternal Madokami_. They said it had been written by Madoka Kaname herself and passed down secretly for generations, but anyone could tell that was just another Partisan lie.

The shrine fell silent as five priestesses gathered at the front. The congregation turned to face them while the trainees took up their place along the back wall.

As always, worship began with the ancient hymn preserved in _The Book of the Law of Cycles_ :  

> _Don’t forget:_  
>  _always, somewhere,_  
>  _someone is fighting for you._  
>  _As long as you remember that,_  
>  _you are not alone._

After the hymn, a priestess began to lead the congregation in prayer. I reached into my pocket, checking for the device I had hidden there, careful not to touch the activation button.

I could feel the fragment of Homura’s Shield attached to the end of the device. Ancient Way scholars had spent years studying the Holy Books and the Traditions of the Four Companions and had concluded that it was okay to use a holy relic this way. I didn’t know much about those issues. I just knew what I had to do.

The Service of the Uninitiated was ending. Heart racing, I watched magical girls usher the trainees out of the shrine so the Sacred Mysteries could begin.

The doors clanged shut. A priestess began to ascend the steps to the altar. My mind screamed at me to push the button, but my finger wouldn’t move.

_Damn it, Hanako!_ I thought. _What are you waiting for?!_

I must have pushed the button, because the next moment a blinding white light forced my eyes closed. I heard screams, then silence.

When I opened my eyes, the shrine was empty. A half-eaten crepe that someone had smuggled in lay on the floor. The lamps still shone along the walls, unaffected by the Time Contraction Wave, but the heretics were gone, taken by the Law of Cycles to the everlasting punishment that awaited all who waged war against the true Church of Madoka.

Maybe now my friends could rest in peace.

I looked back at the doors. Were some of the trainees standing on the other side? Had they heard the screams? I expanded my halberd, ready to fight my way out.

Luckily, the trainees had all gone home. Leaving the shrine, I made my way back through the dimly-lit cave.

I emerged into the sunlight, surprised to see blossoms and green leaves. For a moment I panicked. They’d told me that the Time Contraction Wave would affect only the Partisans’ Soul Gems, accelerating the Gems’ deterioration. Had they made a mistake?

I checked the internet through my neural link. It was still October 14, 3075 C.E. (or, as we magical girls called it, the Year of Hope 1065). Peering beyond the nearest trees, I could see that more distant ones still had autumn colors. It looked like the Time Contraction Wave had affected only the ones nearby.

Sensing movement, my eyes darted to the left. A young girl had stumbled out from behind some trees. Was she one of the Partisan trainees? My grip tightened on my halberd.

The girl was wearing a strange outfit that looked like a school uniform from the twentieth or twenty-first century. She turned to me with a confused expression.

"E-excuse me,” she stammered. “I go to Mitakihara Middle School. Can you help me? I think I’m lost.”

* * *

**Update June 4, 2017:** I originally gave a different description of the painted images of the Four Companions, one that was less similar to the way Mami, Homura, Sayaka, and Kyoko really look, but I've changed the description because I thought it might confuse readers. —sumbebêkos


	2. The Heretic

**Chapter author: Jin**

The girl that stood there looked to be a year younger than me with short pink hair separated by two red ribbons into small twintails.

_Have I met her before?_

She wore a confused and anxious face that looked oddly familiar to me.

“Mitakihara Middle School? There’s no such school by that name anywhere in this area. State your name and your real purpose!”

I lifted my halberd and readied myself before the girl.

She closed her eyes shut like she was looking for courage.

“Ka..Kaname Ma..ma..Madoka. My name is Kaname Madoka!”

“Mado..! How dare you!”

“Ehhh?!”

Kaname Madoka, the girl who changed the world. The greatest magical girl that every lived, that bore the greatest wish, giving undoubtable hope to all that came before and came after. The girl who brought together the Four Companions and saved the everything from uncertainty…a true Goddess.

For someone to falsely claim to be the Great Savior as casually as saying “Hello” is nothing short of blasphemy!

“I will not allow some heretic to sully the good name of Madoka by claiming it as their own!”

The heretic flinched as I rejected her lies.

“I’m...I’m not sure what you’re talking about, but that really is my name. See?”

What?!

She went into what looked like a classical-styled school bag and pulled out and handed me a school ID. It was labeled as the school she had mentioned earlier and had the name “Kaname Madoka” next to a picture of herself.

It didn’t look fake. It seemed like this really was her name.

“As sinful as it is, you don’t appear to be lying.”

“Sinful?”

“That said, you still need to explain what your business is here.”

“I’m not sure myself…I was walking to school with Hitomi-chan and Sayaka-chan when I saw a bright white flash. When I opened my eyes I was here.”

White flash? Could that have been the Time Contraction Wave?

Wait.

“Sayaka-chan?”

Hearing my confusion, the girl who called herself Madoka wore a bright smile while describing her friend.

“Yea, Sayaka. Miki Sayaka. We’re in the same class and we’re really close~ I guess we got separated by that light..”

Companion Sayaka?!

I lowered my halberd as I tried to collect my thoughts.

_It couldn’t be…._

“Hold on one second.”

“Eh? What’s that thing on your neck?”

She was referring to my neural link. I was searching for the school that she had mentioned earlier.

“You’re telling me you’ve never seen one of these before? Once you’re old enough to walk you get issued a linker.”

“Linker?”

“You can’t be serious. Linkers let you message people and access the inter…ah!”

My sentence ran short as my linker finished its search. The school did exist in this city. Over a millennium ago.

“…These records are older than the Hope Calendar. Before 2000 C.E. It’s located near….!”

“What is it?”

“The Library of Cycles!”

The sacred library established by the leaders of the Church of Madoka around Year of Hope 500 and considered one of the Three Holy Sites: The Library of Cycles. It holds all the holy scriptures, hymns, and records of the Companions and the Eternal Madoka. The Library was built so that it could carry on the knowledge of the past ever into the future, on the ground said to be the institute where Madoka and the Companions studied. In other words, **their school**.

Cold sweat was building on the back of my neck.

This girl had too many irregularities. Her name—her beyond retro appearance—her lack of a linker—the information she possessed despite not being a member of the Church, let alone a magical girl. Not to mention her sudden appearance right after activating the Time Contraction Wave.

“Just who are yo—”

“Hold it, Apostate!”

Tch.

All these thoughts made me lose sight that I was on an infiltration mission in enemy territory. Partisan reinforcements had arrived. Three magical girls were approaching the church pretty quickly and it seemed more would be on their way soon enough. I needed to leave. Now.

“Dammit, come with me!”

I grabbed the girl’s wrist and turned.

“Eh?!”

“Run!”


	3. I'll Make You Pay

**Chapter author: sumbebêkos**

We had just started running when some kind of explosive detonated behind us, knocking us to the ground. Opening my eyes, I saw the girl who called herself Madoka lying next to me.

“Hey!” I said, shaking her. She didn’t move.

She clearly wasn’t a magical girl. Even the weakest magical girl could have handled an explosion like that.

As I started to rise, a Partisan stepped in front of me and pointed the spike of her poleaxe at my face.

“Stay where you are, apostate!”

I glared back at her. “You call _me_ an apostate when you follow that filthy book of lies?!”

The Partisan’s face twisted in rage. She lifted her poleaxe into the air. “Why you—!”

“Calm yourself, Tanaka-san.”

Another Partisan approached. She looked older, maybe college age, and wore a red plaid dress with red and black ribbons tied in bows. Her white-gloved hand held a long, metallic lance. There was a solid tip attached to the end of the lance, but the lance itself was hollow like a bamboo stalk.

“But Lieutenant, she—”

“Don’t let that apostate bother you. Her blasphemy can’t diminish Madoka’s glory any more than a drop of water can put out the Sun.” The lieutenant turned to me. “What are you doing here, apostate? Explain yourself.”

I knew that voice. As I stared at the Partisan lieutenant, a memory from more than a year before came rushing back into my mind. I lay on the floor of Sanctum Inevitabilis, half-buried under rubble and smoldering tapestries. At the opposite end of the shrine, an older girl in a red plaid dress stood over a charred body, holding a lance. She watched as the body winked out of existence.

“ _You!_ ”

Before the girl with the poleaxe could react, I hurled myself at the lieutenant. My halberd sliced through the air, only to be blocked by her lance. With a heave, she sent me reeling. I tripped and fell backward, hitting my head hard against the ground.

As my vision cleared, I saw the lieutenant strolling toward me.

“Do I know you?” she asked.

“You! You’re the one who killed Miyuki-san!”

The lieutenant stopped and cocked her head to the side.

“Oh, I remember you. You were the trainee of that shrine guard I sent to the Wraiths a little over a year ago. I’m surprised you've survived this long; whoever took over your training must have been a _lot_ better than she was.”

“ _AAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGHHHH!!!_ ”

A crackling blue-white energy shield intercepted my halberd. I pushed with all my strength, trying to break through.

The lieutenant smirked. “A weakling, just like your mentor.”

“Damn you!”

The lieutenant pointed her lance at me. A ball of magically-charged flame leapt from the lance’s opening, sending me flying. I slammed into a tree and landed face-down on the ground.

I felt a hand grab my hair and yank my head up.

“Now,” the lieutenant said, holding my face inches from hers, “you’re going to tell me what you’re doing here. Tanaka-san, go into the shrine. Warn the worshipers that they might be under attack.”

Now it was my turn to smirk. “I don’t think you’ll find any worshipers.”

The lieutenant’s gaze snapped back to me. “What do you mean?”

“I just destroyed the Soul Gem of every heretic in there.”

“You’re lying!” The lieutenant turned to the Partisan who hadn’t spoken yet. “Sasaki-san!”

“Sh-she’s right,” the Partisan said, her face paling. “I can’t detect a single soul-signature inside the cave!”

“No… No, it can’t be,” the lieutenant murmured, sinking to her knees. “Chitose-san … Itsumi-san … Himeko-san … Sasaki-san, where’s Himeko-san?!”

The Partisan swallowed. “I don’t detect her anywhere within range. The most recent traces of her soul-signature are … inside the cave.”

The lieutenant threw herself to the ground, sobbing. Her companions ran over to help her up, but she blocked them with an energy shield. At last she lifted her face, fixing me with a look of pure hatred.

“I’ll make you pay,” she said through clenched teeth. “I’ll make you pay for what you did!”

“Go ahead and kill me, heretic. I can die happy now, knowing I got to see that look on your face.”

“You think I’m going to kill you?” the lieutenant snarled, rising to her feet. “There’s no way I’m letting you off that easy. Our researchers have found a way to halt Soul Gem corruption right before the point where a girl is taken by the Law of Cycles. I can make you suffer as long as I want! You’ll—”

“Look out!” cried the Partisan with the poleaxe. She pulled the lieutenant out of the way moments before five daggers embedded themselves in ground where the two had been standing.

“Prepare yourselves, heretics!” a magical girl shouted, hurling herself at the three Partisans.

Over a dozen magical girls followed, their weapons glowing with magical power.

Suddenly I remembered the strange girl I had left lying on the ground. Glancing around, I spotted her sitting a few feet away. Frozen in place, she watched the battle raging in front of her.

“Hey!” I called, running over. “This isn’t a safe place! We need to get you out of here!”

“W-what’s going on?” she said, staring wide-eyed at the fighting. “Why are magical girls fighting each other?”

I stopped in my tracks. Did she really not know about the war?

Never mind. I had to get her somewhere safe.

“Come on!” I said, tugging at her arm. “Get up!”

“But this is wrong! Magical girls shouldn’t be fighting each other!”

“Never mind about that! Come _on_!”

I picked the girl up and threw her over my shoulder. I had just started to run when I heard the Partisan lieutenant’s voice behind me.

“Don’t think you’ve gotten away!” she screamed. “I’ll find you! I swear by the Law of Cycles, I’ll make you pay!”


	4. A Certain Novel Sideshow

**Chapter author: Alen Smythe**

**Edited by **sumbebêkos****

**Editor's warning: Contains insanity.**

 

> If you are ever in mortal danger, or beset by existential doubt, merely run around in circles, wave your arms about, and shout.  
>  —excerpt from _The Catalog of Forbidden Tomes by Index ~~Library~~ Librorum ~~Prostate~~ ~~Prohead Prohibition~~_ (the author’s name has since been hastily crossed out, replaced with a crudely attached Post-it note amending the author’s name to Dedicatus545)

The Library of Cycles was a strange place indeed—alien geometries, surreal architecture, deranged backgrounds that resembled stock images gleaned from the fathoms of the Wired, and the general sensation that one was under the effect of acid, and I’m not talking about a small dose here, we’re dealing with an amount equivalent to the carrying capacity of an oil tanker. Those who walk through this place have a strange compulsion to crane their neck, often tilted at odd, bordering-on-the impossible, angles. At least that was the sensation that a certain forsaken flavor of Starburst thought as she and Hanako waltzed through the entrance and into the orgasm of an unhinged design student, better known to others as the Library of Cycles.

“Remind me again, how exactly did we escape from the, uh, what was their name again? The Artisans?” the strawberry-flavored middle school student asked.

“You should show some respect to those filthy heathens, you know,” Hanako replied, “and the disgusting heretics we just escaped from are called the Partisans, by the way.”

“Ah, but refresh my memory, how did we…”

The middle school student proceeded to interrupt herself as she collided with a bookshelf, knocking several books to the floor and rousing the ire of the head librarian, a beautiful and supposedly unpopular butterfly of a delusional-looking pale figure with unkempt hair and eye bags.

As Hanako was apologizing to the head librarian, the middle school student flipped her way through one of the books that had fallen, a rather large and ornately decorated volume that for some reason was adorned with safety pins.

“The Catalog of Forbidden Tomes huh?” the middle schooler said aloud as she scanned the open chapter.

The content of the chapter that she saw is transcribed below:

 

> The devoted lamb protects the knowledge of the strong. As such, it is my solemn duty to record the events of our struggles against the numerous heretical movements. The first of which was the war against the Haruhists—a rather pitiable affair to be honest, as the heretics’ object of worship was surprisingly easy to eliminate for a reality warper. Who would have thought that a mere slap to her face was all that it took? Granted, the fallout resulted in one or two universes spontaneously blinking out of existence, but it was a small and acceptable price to pay for victory. The crusade that followed from the revenge of the last apostle of hers was disheartening to be sure. Sadly, the name of the forefront crusader remains lost to history, so I shall henceforth refer to him as ‘John Smith.’ However, Smith’s crusade against our holy order was doomed to failure after his disastrous alliance with the Moonies, who eventually turned on Smith and his followers during the decisive Battle of Al Hazard. With the opposition against us divided amongst themselves in their petty squabbles, we were swiftly able to exterminate all resistance against our holy order. The Lunatics that comprised the Moonies were swiftly scouted out and terminated; regardless of their fascinations with astronomy, these warriors had potential, but they had a weakness: they couldn’t handle bullets. The elimination of heretics and apostates was not to cease as a particularly powerful following arose based on the teachings of an insane bald wizard, who preached messages of empathy and understanding one another without misconceptions. While we were making preparations for removing this nuisance from this mortal coil, fate once again smiled upon us, the chosen holy order, as happenstance went our way. The sacrilegious wizard was tragically killed when one of his followers accidentally crushed him with an enormous pilotable robot. The struggles and inner-group battle that subsequently arose made it easy for us to persuade the Lightning League to intervene on our behalf. Both parties were subsequently wiped out in the free-for-all, along with a decently-sized chunk of Australia. As all of this was going on, there were strange rumors spread by counter-revolutionary groups that the world should be left in peace; we responded by leaving these protesters in pieces. Our rationale for doing so was due to our holy order following through with the advice of a temporary ally, a being clad in white and gifted with immense magical strength, who referred to herself as a devil. One of her proclamations of fate and piety was her mandate of companionship, namely ‘Friendship, Through Superior Firepower, and if all else fails, it doesn’t hurt to beat the crap out of everyone.’ Our holy order took such words to heart when she had outlived her usefulness, at which time the apprentices demonstrated the master’s lesson to the source with extreme prejudice. The only group of unorthodox believers tolerated by our holy order was the followers of the operator of the Wired, a presence known as the Loli ARPANET Intelligent Network-Program. In fact, she occasionally moonlights as the library’s chief assistance and backup database—that is, when she isn’t trolling students and psychologically breaking the collective consensus of all perception and knowledge. The Axis Cultists were a group of heretics that were dealt with in a prolonged struggle. Mental attacks had no discernable effects on them, probably due to their collective madness and/or stupidity. Fortunately, these cultists were not immune to electrocution, and their challenge to our rule was quenched. We also scored a rather interesting boon when the leader of the cultists, an alleged and self-proclaimed goddess, was turned in to our high council by a rather grim and sarcastic fellow who wanted to be rid of the, and I quote here, “useless cheat item.” As of the transcription of this manuscript, we of this holy order are currently embroiled in yet another power struggle with yet another group of delusional apostates. This new group is rather dangerous, channeling the power of ancient relics paired with and amplified by magnetic acoustic devices that—

The passage cut off there, with a notable bloodstain discoloring the rest of the page. A postscript hastily scrawled into the book’s margins stated: “The author of the book was participating in the conflict described in the unfinished sentence as she was transcribing. She was unfortunately punched by a tiny pouty-mouthed adorable hamster during said transcription. Witnesses to the scene describe hearing a song-like mantra as the hamster sought to protect a sweet-faced garden gnome that was her lesbian lover from the forces of our holy order. The author’s noble sacrifice was the catalyst that allowed us to resist the genocidal forces of…"

The scrawling in the margins was replaced by the original author’s fiery retort that proclaimed that she wasn’t dead and that it was just a flesh wound, but before the curious middle schooler could read more, Hanako yelled, “HEY! Are you done wasting time? We’ve got to get back to what’s important; enough goofing around.”


	5. That's Impossible

**Chapter author:** **sumbebêkos**

“Holy Madoka!” Professor Oshiro gasped. “What happened?!”

I flinched at the professor’s blasphemy, but I was too exhausted to protest. We must have been quite a sight, standing at the doorway to his office in our torn and dirt-stained clothing. I hadn’t even thought to transform back to my civilian clothes. My wounds had healed thanks to my regeneration magic, but the pink-haired girl’s knees were still bleeding.

“It’s a long story,” I said, gesturing for the girl to follow me into the office.

“Should I call Library security? The campus medical center?”

“No. Professor Oshiro, I messaged you because I have a question I need you to answer.”

“Um … okay. What do you need to ask?”

I eyed him for a moment before replying. I had never trusted academics, even the ones who worked at the Library of Cycles. Just a year ago, one of the Library’s scholars had published a book arguing that Homura the Witness wasn’t the author of _The Book of the Law of Cycles_ and questioning the authenticity of the Traditions of the Four Companions. I tried to stay as far away from those closeted heretics as possible.

In this case, though, I had no choice. I wasn’t about to waste my superiors’ time with some middle school girl’s delusions.

“Professor, you’re an expert on ancient Japanese history, right? What’s a question about Mitakihara City that only you and someone from Madoka Kaname’s time could answer?”

The professor frowned. “Why? What’s this about?”

“Please, just answer the question. I’ll explain later.”

“That’s a hard one. So many records were lost during the Axis Cult War… I’ll need to do some poking around.”

The professor sank into his chair and closed his eyes, focusing his attention on his neural linker.

While the professor searched the web, I had a chance to scan his office. Bookcases occupied almost every inch of wallspace. Some of the shelves were filled with books and academic journals, but most of them supported plastic figurines of young women with abnormally large eyes.

“Um, excuse me,” I said. “What are those figurines for?”

“We aren’t sure,” the professor replied, his eyes still closed. “Archeologists have been discovering them while excavating the ruins of an early 21st-century apartment building. Considering the inordinate amount of money that their impoverished owner appears to have spent on them, most experts assume they must have had some kind of religious significance.”

“So,” I said, “they’re … goddess statues?”

“That’s the theory.”

With a swing of my halberd, I sent the figurines on the nearest shelf tumbling to the floor.

“This is holy ground! How dare you defile it with these heathen idols!”

“Be careful!” the professor said, jumping up from his seat. “Do you realize how much those cost the Library?!”

“You’re finished!” I shouted, smashing the bookcase to splinters. “Once Matriarch Ishimura hears about this— Wait a minute,” I said, holding up a body-length pillow with a picture of a scantily clad girl on it. "What is _this_?!"

"Oh, that? That's another artifact from the excavation site. I'm, uh, studying it." The professor cleared his throat. "Look, I found what you wanted. I have a question that only someone from Madoka Kaname’s time and a few modern scholars could answer. I’ll tell you what it is if you promise to stop trashing my office.”

I released a breath, letting my halberd drop to my side. I had plenty of time to figure out what to do about Professor Oshiro later.

“Fine. What’s the question?”

“What was the name of Mitakihara City’s mascot during Madoka Kaname’s time?”

I turned to the pink-haired girl, who was cowering in a corner. “Do you know the answer?”

“M-Mitakihara City’s mascot?”

“Yes. Do you know its name?”

“I-its name’s Mi-ta kun.”

I turned to the professor, who was staring wide-eyed at the girl.

“How?” he said. “How does she know that name?”

“You mean she’s right? That’s the mascot’s name?”

The professor nodded.

I looked back at the girl who still huddled in the corner. She couldn’t possibly be…

“Wait. Professor, do you know what the mascot looks like?”

“Professor Gonzalez-Ayesta at Holy Quintet University made a reconstruction based on archeological evidence. I can pull it up on—”

“Not yet.” I turned to the girl, holding out a pencil and a piece of paper from the professor's desk. “If you’re really from the 21st century, draw a picture of the mascot.”

The professor and I watched as she rose and walked warily toward us. Her hand was shaking so much that it was hard for her to draw, but she managed to sketch something that looked like a cross between an octopus and a house plant.

“That’s impossible,” murmured the professor. “No one’s seen that picture except…”

His voice trailed off. He turned to stare at the girl.

“Who _are_ you?”

Before she could reply, a voice came over my neural link, making me jump.

“Fujisawa-san! Where are you? I told you to report back to me after the mission!”

“I’m sorry, Sergeant! Something came up. I’m heading back now. There’s something I need to show you.”

I began to close the link, then paused.

“Sergeant, has there been any news about Akina-san?”

“... No. No news today.”

I let out a sigh, not sure whether it was from disappointment or relief.

“Don’t worry, Fujisawa-san. We’ll get her back.”

“Thanks, Sergeant.”

I cut the link and turned to the pink-haired girl. I wasn’t sure what to say. I didn’t believe she was Madoka, but now it felt weird to just order her around.

“There’s someone who needs to meet you,” I said. “It’s important. Will you come with me?”

The girl glanced nervously at my halberd, then at Professor Oshiro, then back at me.

“Okay.”

“Hold on!” said the professor. “I have a right to know what’s going on here. How does—”

Ignoring him, I grabbed the girl’s wrist and hurried from the office.


	6. A Friend's Lament

**Chapter author: Jin**

“Make sure you stay next to me. Go too far and Madoka knows where you’ll end up.”

“B-but… I don’t know where I’ll end up...”

“You really have to stop doing that at some point.”

I was currently leading the self-proclaimed "Madoka" by the wrist around the inner halls of the Library.

The corridors of the Library of Cycles were made up of magical energy infused by the original architects. They shifted and relocated constantly in completely nonsensical patterns. Along with a serious case of nausea, any uninitiated members of the Church that tried to pass through them would end up lost until their last breaths.

“Um…”

“What is it? If you have something to say, just do it.”

“Well, I was wondering who it was you were talking to on that, uh, 'phone' of yours.”

“That was the Sergeant. She’s my direct commanding officer and the one we’re going to go see right now. After everything I’ve seen, it’s best for her to decide what to do about you once she’s seen you.”

“What…kind of person is she?”

“The Sergeant? She’s a devoted follower of the teachings of Madoka and one of the most skilled magical girls I’ve ever seen. She has brought herself to the edge of corruption numerous times to ensure the well-being of the Church and would gladly do so again if the need were to rise. She’s a model magical girl.”

“Amazing! She must be such I kind person to do all—“

“No, not in the slightest.”

“E-Eh?”

I couldn’t help but cut her off after hearing such a serious misunderstanding.

Sergeant Ueno Karin: the cold-blooded strategist with beyond excellent commando and covert op skills. Her ruthless mantra **Complete the mission, at any and all costs** had earned her the title " The Frozen Queen." With her in command, the Church had successfully snuffed out several conspiring anti-Madoka sects that up until that point had been nigh unstoppable. She was arguably one of the Church’s greatest, and most merciless, assets.

“She’s sent many magical girls off to the Eternal Madoka in her crusade for the Church. One might even call her an inquisitor.”

“W-w-we’re going to go meet someone like that?! Should we be going in the opposite direction as quickly as possible?!”

“Look, it's not like she’s a demon or anything. She’s a devotee of the faith after all. In fact, there is one person that she softens up to. Though few have had the chance to see it, Sergeant Ueno absolutely melts in front of Akina—!"

I stopped walking as I realized what I was saying and grit my teeth in frustration.

“Akina…-san? You mentioned her during your phone call. What is she like?”

“She was—is something close to an older sister to me, and a younger one to the Sergeant. We trained together in our younger days as magical girls. She became so capable she earned the rank of a Corporal within two years of her initiation.”

“She sounds incredible too. Did something happen to her? You look so sad whenever you mention her.”

“……..She’s been M.I.A. for the last six months.”

“M.I.A.?”

“She…she’s missing! She disappeared half a year ago!”

Akina-san had been given a special mission to investigate the low-profile group of heretics that seemed to be amassing in the city. It was a covert ops task meant only to collect intel on how to exterminate a possible threat. Two weeks after her deployment we received word that her base of operations was utterly destroyed.

We had found traces of two induced corruptions at the scene and believed that Akina-san and the rest of her squad had been captured by the fanatics.

“I know Akina-san. She’s way too strong to get taken down by a bunch of Madoka-less heathens. I’m going to find her and bring her back home.”

“Hanako-san…”

“Stop. We’ve wasted enough time as it is talking about this. You _don’t_ want to see the Sergeant after she’s been kept waiting too long.”

“...”


	7. The Frozen Queen

**Chapter author: sumbebêkos**

  

> A person becomes naïve if they're too kind. Careless if they're too bold. And no matter how hard you try to protect others, there's no reward. Those who can't comprehend such things aren't fit to be magical girls.  
>  —Mariko Aioi’s _Authenticated Traditions of Homura the Witness and Mami the Just_ 5.127

 

Sergeant Ueno was reading reports when we arrived.

“Come in, Fujisawa-san,” she said without looking up.

Leading the pink-haired girl by the wrist, I approached the Sergeant’s desk.

“Please forgive my lateness. A situation came up.”

The Sergeant sat silently behind her desk, her expressionless eyes fixed on the screen floating in front of her. After a minute, she dismissed the screen with a swipe of her hand and looked at me.

“I heard about the scene you made in Professor Oshiro’s office.”

“Professor Oshiro’s—?” I felt my face grow hot. “Have you seen the heathen idols he has in there?! How can we allow him to defile—”

“That’s not what I’m talking about, Fujisawa-san. Professor Oshiro contacted Militia Headquarters after you left the Library. He told us about the stunt you and that girl pulled.”

“Stunt? Sergeant, it wasn’t a stunt! I couldn’t have let this girl go free after the things she said, but I didn’t want to waste your time, so I asked the professor—"

“That wasn’t your decision to make!” The Sergeant slammed her hands down against her desk, making me jump. “What were you thinking?! You’re carrying a top-secret experimental weapon! I ordered you to return immediately after completing the mission!” She sighed. “You’ve been acting erratically ever since Shinonome-san disappeared. I knew I shouldn’t have let you take that mission."

The Sergeant turned to a wall-length window that overlooked the military base. A pair of Maju Suppressors towered a few yards away, sending out the magical field that blocked Wraiths from manifesting within Mitakihara City and the surrounding towns. Down below, a line of trucks rumbled through the main gate, carrying a fresh supply of Grief Cubes.

“The Partisans’ attacks on our Grief Cube harvesters have been increasing lately. We’ve got barely enough coming in to purify the Militia’s Soul Gems. The last thing I need right now is another—”

The Sergeant paused.

“I’m getting a message from General Naganohara," she said. "Headquarters just received a recorded threat from the Partisans. It’s … about Shinonome-san.”

“Akina-san? What’s happened? Is she alright?!”

“I don’t know. I haven’t watched the Partisans’ message yet.”

“Send it to me! Please!”

The Sergeant eyed me for a long moment, then sighed. A dialog box appeared in my field of vision, telling me that a video recording had just arrived through my neural link. Before the icy fear in my stomach could stop me, I played the file.

I stood inside what looked like a prison cell. A girl in a jumpsuit knelt in front of me, her head bowed and her wrists tied in front of her.

“Akina-san!”

Another girl walked into my line of sight, holding Akina’s red-orange Soul Gem. It was the Partisan lieutenant I had fought earlier that day.

“I am Lieutenant Yuko Minakami of the Sacred Guard of the Greater Vehicle. This is Corporal Akina Shinonome. I think you might know her.”

The lieutenant held her free hand, glowing with magic, inches from the Soul Gem. Shrieking, Akina fell forward and writhed on the floor as pain beyond anything that human nerves could carry shot straight into her soul.

“ _AKINA-SAAAAAN!_ ”

I tried in vain to run at the lieutenant. The recording rolled on, oblivious to my rage.

At last the lieutenant took her hand from the Soul Gem, letting Akina drop into merciful unconsciousness.

“In revenge for your attack on Sanctum Decreti, we’ve made plans to execute this apostate on Saturday. You have one chance to save her life.”

A box appeared in front of me, showing the words _Tomorrow, Friday, 13:00_ and a local map with a red arrow on it.

“If the girl who carried out today’s attack shows up alone at the time and location shown, we’ll spare Corporal Shinonome. If not, we’ll proceed with the execution. The agony she felt just now is nothing compared to what she’ll feel before she dies.”

The recording ended.

I opened my eyes at the same time as the Sergeant. We looked at each other.

“Fujisawa-san—”

“Sergeant, I want to go meet them tomorrow.”

“Absolutely not.”

“Please, Sergeant! I won’t let them capture me. I’ll rescue Akina-san and kill that lieutenant!”

“No, you won’t. You’re joining the security detail for tomorrow's Grief Cube harvesting run. That’s an order.”

“Grief Cube harvesting?! How can you think about that when—”

“I said that’s an order, Fujisawa-san!”

The Sergeant looked over my shoulder and nodded. A pair of magical girls walked up behind the pink-haired girl and pulled her toward the door. She let out a yelp of surprise but didn’t resist as they led her away.

As the door closed, the Sergeant turned back to me. “Matriarch Ishimura has called a council at the Shrine of the Confessor to discuss the girl you found. I expect you to be there on Sunday at 14:00. Understood?”

"Yes, Sergeant."

I turned to leave. As I reached the door, my strength gave out. Hot tears poured down my cheeks. My hand slipped from the doorknob, and I sank to my knees. Even with the Sergeant watching, I couldn’t stop myself.

Suddenly I felt the Sergeant’s arms wrap around me. She held me as sobs wracked my body.

"They're going to kill her! They're going to kill Akina-san!"

“I’ll do everything I can to find her, Fujisawa-san. I promise.”


	8. Hard Decisions

** Chapter author: Jin **

> I won't forget the promise we made.  
>  I close my eyes and affirm it.  
>  I shake off the surging darkness and move forward.  
>  — _Connect_ , Opening Hymn of the Feast of the Great Wish

The next morning, the Mitakihara base was bustling.

After the debriefing the day before, Sergeant Ueno had dispatched a squad of magical girls to investigate the area that the Partisans’ threat message was traced to. The squad found signs of Partisan activity, but none of the enemy were anywhere to be seen.

Orders were then handed down to prepare a platoon to attempt to rescue Akina-san. It was scheduled to arrive at the meeting-place transmitted by the Partisans by 09:00.

Magical girls were running around prepping for the mission to begin.

“How many times do I need to tell you to stand down?!”

“Zero if you would let me join the rescue mission!”

I was currently berating the Sergeant in the deployment hanger. She was walking around with a checklist, making sure all the previsions for the mission were accounted for, and I was following close behind her.

“Your persistence is admirable but even more of a reason why I can’t let you go on this assignment. Just look at the state you’re in after seeing that recording.”

The bags under my eyes were prominent. I couldn’t remember how many times I had re-watched that recording, looking for even the slightest clue to finding Akina-san. I can’t say that I’d had any sleep.

“You are way too emotionally connected to Akina-san to be allowed to go on this mission. The recklessness that you’ve shown these past few days only proves how much of a liability you would be.”

“No one knows Akina-san better than you and I do. If you would ju—“

“Do you want her to die, Fujisawa?!”

!?

The Sergeant turned stopped walking and turned on a dime to face me. Hearing the sudden shout, all the girls in the hanger stopped in their tracks for a moment before continuing with their prep.

Her comment made the words sink in my throat like a rock.

“You’re right. You and I know Akina-san more than anyone else. That also means I know you better than anyone else. You’re hot-headed, stubborn, and above all else, sentimental as hell! You were called out _specifically_ in that message by a revenge-seeking heretic who’s just as unstable as you’re being right now. If you go in there without your head on straight, you’ll die! If you get ahead of yourself because Akina-san is in danger, you’ll die, and she’ll die along with you!”

She stared me down with the most intense eyes I’d ever seen from her.

“Stop acting like a damn kid, follow orders, and stand down!”

My hands were trembling in frustration. All I could picture was Akina-san’s face in agony as the Partisan lieutenant tortured her Soul Gem. I didn’t notice how tightly shut my eyes were until I felt the Sergeant’s hand on my shoulder.

Her eyes had softened significantly, and her tone was warmer than it had been before.

“Akina-san is one of most magnificent magical girls I’ve ever seen. She’s one of Madoka’s best and brightest and is invaluable to the Church. We’re going to use every resource we can to make sure she comes out in one piece. The best way to make sure that happens with absolute certainty to go in with zero distractions. Let me and my operatives handle this. Please.”

She’s right, I am hot-headed.

Akina-san meant as much to the Sergeant as she did to me, except that the Sergeant knew how to keep herself together. If I lost my cool trying to get Akina-san, I could end up playing right into the heretics’ hands.

I wiped away the bitter tears streaming down my face and looked up at Sergeant Ueno.

“Ye…Yes, ma’am.”

“Good. Your security detail is set to leave at 10:00. Go make sure we have Grief Cubes for Akina-san’s return. I can’t imagine it's low on corruption considering how long she’s been gone.”

I nodded, unsure if I could get out another proper word with the state I was in.

Sergeant Ueno turned around to address the magical girls prepping in the hanger.

“Make all final preparations. We move out in 15 minutes. May Madoka watch over us!”

’’Yes!’’


	9. Wraiths and Demons

**Chapter author: sumbebêkos**

Two hours later, I was riding in the open cargo area of a Grief Cube transport vehicle, alongside some other members of the security detail. There was one truck ahead and two behind, each capable of holding hundreds of Grief Cubes. Behind us, the shining towers of Mitakihara City faded into the distance.

“Approaching the edge of the Suppression Field,” came the team leader’s voice over my linker. “Keep a lookout for Wraith activity!”

I scanned the horizon, trying to focus on the mission, but it was no use. I couldn’t think about Wraiths or Grief Cubes.

I closed my eyes and tried to use the meditation technique my mentor had taught me. Breathing deeply, I tried to picture Madoka drawing the fear and anxiety from my Soul Gem, taking it upon herself.

But I couldn’t. My thoughts kept turning back to the image of Akina-san in that Partisan prison. Frustrated, I opened my eyes and stared down at the dusty road passing below me.

“Wraith activity detected ahead!” said the team leader. “All designated Grief Cube harvesters to the front! Everyone else, secure the sides and back. Don’t let the heretics ambush us like last time!”

Dutifully, I hopped down and joined the security team encircling the line of trucks. From the front came shouts and the sounds of magical discharge. Out of the corner of my eye, I glimpsed bursts of magical energy and the shifting polygonal form of a Wraith. There was a sudden burst of white light, followed by the sound of Grief Cubes peppering the ground.

“Another one’s approaching from the northeast!” someone called over the neural link. “This one’s a Shugen!”

Starved of human emotion thanks to the Suppression Fields, the Wraiths were drawn to us like flies. By mid-afternoon, we turned back, our trucks loaded with Grief Cubes. I took my place in the back of the second truck and checked the time. It was already 15:47.

“Sergeant Ueno?” I ventured over my neural link.

After a long wait, the Sergeant responded. “Yes, Fujisawa-san?”

“Are you alright? What happened? Did you find Akina-san?”

“I'm fine. ... No. We didn’t find her. The Partisans never showed up.”

“They never…” My voice trailed off.

“They must have detected our ambush. We waited until 13:30, but there was no sign of them. We combed the surrounding area and didn’t find anything.”

“But … this was our last chance. Tomorrow they’re going to…”

“I’m sorry, Fujisawa-san.”

I grit my teeth, feeling anger rising inside me.

“Why didn’t you let me go?!” I was shouting out loud now, not caring about the stares of the girls next to me. “They wanted me, not you! If you had just let—”

A gunshot interrupted me, followed by the sound of a shattering Soul Gem. The girl next to me swayed, her eyes glazing, before tumbling out of the truck. She vanished before she hit the ground.

The next moment, a blast of magical energy hit the truck ahead of us. The truck swerved, almost tipping over. I turned and saw Partisans pouring over a nearby hilltop. A few members of the security team had seen them coming and were moving to hold them back.

“Fujisawa-san!” the Sergeant shouted over my linker. “Fujisawa-san, are you okay?!”

“We’re under attack!” I said. “I need to cut the link."

Within seconds, I was face-to-face with one of the attackers, a short girl armed with a spiked mace. My halberd clanged against her mace, knocking her to the ground. I saw the glint of a Soul Gem on her ankle and brought my halberd’s blade down on it. She spasmed, wide-eyed, and disappeared.

I turned just in time to deflect a knife thrown by a heretic. As she fumbled for another knife, I lunged and drove the spike of my halberd through her belly. She fell to her knees, clutching her wound. I channeled magic into my halberd’s blade and swung as hard as I could, splitting her from her shoulder to the middle of her chest. Her body flickered and vanished as pain and horror overwhelmed her Soul Gem.

By the time the battle ended, I had killed five more heretics. We had lost a few on our side, including a lanky, short-haired girl I had once sparred with during my training. 

As we searched the area for spilled Grief Cubes, I saw a girl lying a few feet away, a crossbow bolt lodged in her thigh. She had the blue armband of a Partisan. Her eyes widened in fear as I approached and stood over her.

She looked young, about the age I’d been at my initiation. The Soul Gem attached to her choker was almost consumed by blackness.

“Please,” she gasped. “Please, help me. My Soul Gem...”

I yanked the Soul Gem from her neck and set it on the ground. Gripping my halberd in both hands, I positioned its blade over the Gem.

“No, don’t!” the Partisan cried. “Please!”

I lifted my halberd into the air.

“You won’t get away with this!” she shouted. “I’m sending my mentor a picture of you right now! She never forgets the people who hurt her friends! She’ll find you!”

“And I’ll kill her too,” I said.

“Don’t underestimate Lieutenant Minakami! Someday she’ll kill you and all the other apostates!”

I froze.

_Lieutenant Minakami? Isn’t that the name of…_

“Fujisawa-san, what are you doing?”

One of my teammates was walking toward me and the Partisan.

“Stop wasting time. We need to get back inside the Suppression Field before nightfall.”

She took out one of her revolvers and aimed it at the Partisan’s Soul Gem.

“Wait!” I shouted, grabbing her wrist.

“What in Madoka’s name are you doing?!”

“Please, wait! We need to take this heretic as a prisoner. It might be the only way to save Akina-san!”


End file.
